DFW to NW Montana road trip

[leftfield]

I'm leaving mid July for a month long road trip from Dallas to NW Montana (Flathead Lake). I plan on staying in the Denver area for a couple of days each way and a 1.5 week stay in Montana for some R & R. Any suggestions on things to see or certain highways to adventure between Denver and NW Montana?

 

[shokdimn]

“Turn me loose, set me free. Somewhere in the middle of Montana.” From a song I think.

Wish I were there: in Montana that is! What is your mode of transport for your “road trip”?

Two-wheel, four-wheel, or maybe four-wheel with bike(s) in tow.

 

[charismaticmegafauna]

<snip>Any suggestions on things to see ....

Sorry -- not much to see between Denver and Flathead Lake....!

 

[drc32-0]

You lucky dog,you're doing the ride I had planned for this summer until circumstances canceled it.If I was in your boots I sure wouldn't miss the beartooth pass(US212 from Yellowstone area to near Billings) and "Going to the Sun Road" through Glacier NP.US 89 through Grand Teton NP is beautiful,but probably crowded in July.Best wishes on a fun vacation.

 

[leftfield]

shokdimn - I'm riding my 2005 FJR. Just bought it a couple of months ago, recently put a new pair of Avons on it (which I really like btw) and now I'm ready to hit the road...

drc32-0 - thanks for the info. lemme know if you cange your mind and i'll meet you in yellowstone!

 

[FlyingLow]

Mt. Evans, little west of Denver and south from I-70. Paved road going up to 14,000 feet. Guys have posted pics of this here.

Loveland Pass, on old U.S. 6 is pretty cool, too. Going from west to east, as you clear the pass and start to drop, way down below you can see cars coming out of Eisenhower Tunnel where the interstate goes under the continental divide.

Happy riding. Sounds like a great trip.

 

[Bearly Flying]

Not that far over to Reno for WFO, July 27-30th

 

[shokdimn]

leftfield,

Sounds like a real adventure. Have you been to MT before? Just wondering since you have a specific destination (Flathead Lake)? To me the whole western third of the state is a great place to vacation. Don’t get me wrong I like the rest of the state too. It’s just that I really like the mountainous region.

drc32 mentioned the GTTSR in Glacier. Is that on your agenda? There is some absolutely spectacular scenery in and around the park. B) I much prefer Glacier’s scenery to Yellowstone.

Meaning I’d take Glacier any day over Yellowstone! No offense intended to those who love Yellowstone.

It would be easier to talk a little more at length by knowing how familiar you are with MT and WY. Post up. And by the way, there will probably be several of us that are going to want to hear about your trip!

 

[leftfield]

shokdimn - I visited Flathead lake and Glacier National Park July of 2003 via DFW/Kalispell airports. I was in Big Fork, MT for the 4th of July parade which was really cool with a "small town Norman Rockwellesque" feeling. My buddy owns a cherry orchard in Yellow Bay, MT (south/east side of Flathead) and I plan to stay with him for one to two weeks depending on my desire to adventure on the FJR... Overall, I have a month from July 11 to August 11 so I've got plenty of time to venture out using Yellow Bay as my base.

I'm a little familiar with Glacier National from my previous trip and plan to see as much as possible on this one. (I went white water rafting and on a one-day hike to ice-berg lake in the park) I haven't researched the exact routes for future riding in/around Glacier but plan to do some of it in the near future and the rest when I arrive to Flathead. I have zero knowledge of WY and Yellowstone - have never been! My only conern on the WY portion of the trip is finding accomodation since I'm traveling in the prime-time summer season....

I definetely plan to take lotsa pictures and will certianly post a link with access to them.

 

[shokdimn]

Having a friend that lives there puts you way ahead in the game, especially if he is a rider. He’ll probably be able to tell ya more about MT in a few minutes, person to person, than I would be able to by typing for a couple of hours. But I am familiar with MT. I lived there for 3 & ½ years back in the early 80’s. Speaking of your friend’s orchard. The best cherries I have ever eaten came out of the Flathead valley. That was back in 82. They were fresh picked and almost indescribably delicious. Funny how ya remember something like huh?

I was thinking of hauling a couple of dirt-bikes up there this summer with my son and hitting the trails. It seems like they’ve got more trails up there and places to ride than you can shake a stick at. And I can tell ya some of those trails are rough to hoof it on.

Your friend will no doubt tell ya all about where to go in and around Glacier and Waterton. For me, I would enjoy getting to ride any of the paved roads north of Missoula and west of Hwy 287 & 89 on my Fjr. Last time I was on Hwy 89 was in 04. They were applying what they call “chip seal” on a stretch of it and I think Hwy 44. You’re not likely to enjoy riding your FJR on a stretch of road that they are applying chip seal to. Ya can probably check with the MDOT to find out where that kind of stuff is going on.

When I lived there I spent most of my recreation time in the triangle as drawn from Great Falls to Helena then to Stanford then back to Great Falls. To me, the paved roads in the Little Belts and the Big Belts both offer beautiful scenery. There are some roads thru or around parts of the little Belts that start out as paved then turn to gravel. Some of those loops have spectacular scenery IMO. But I wouldn’t ride my FJR on those.

Of course I’m sure ya know ya gotta watch out for lots of different kinds of wildlife and even domestic stock on and near the roads up there. I was just reading about a guy the other day that T-boned a bear about 60 miles from Kalispell.

I’ve traveled WY too but not nearly enough to suite me. I think the Bighorns offer beautiful scenery. I’ve only crossed them on Alt 14 but intend to cross them on 14 & 16 in the not to distant future. Maybe you can tell that I sometimes try to avoid the crowded touristy places. Even though I have traveled in and around Yellowstone several times.

Have ya finalized your route through WY and MT yet? B) If so, do ya mind telling us about it?

Hope ya have a safe trip!

 

[Clark Kent]

I'm leaving mid July for a month long road trip from Dallas to NW Montana (Flathead Lake). I plan on staying in the Denver area for a couple of days each way and a 1.5 week stay in Montana for some R & R. Any suggestions on things to see or certain highways to adventure between Denver and NW Montana?

If your coming to Montana or Wyoming to visit, Great! If your coming with the hope of moving here later,

we are all full up.

Stay out. No Room at the inn. Overcrowded. No one need apply.

Through traffic only. etc, etc, etc.

When I moved to Montana 37 years ago, there were more sheep than people.

Now all the tourists (bikers excluded) want to move here and screw the locals, cause the sheep are gone.

Montana and Wyoming are great places to visit, you just don't want to live here. Look at me, a real nasty person Believe me, you don't want to live by an old curmudgeon like me!.

And remember, We have the highest income tax in the nation, our school suck, the indians get everything free and you have to pay for it, it's colder than hell in the winter, and the riding season is only 3 months lone. The women are all taken and (as I said before) the sheep are gone. The fish are dead and elk and deer have mad elk and deer disease! We have more toxic waste dumps than all the other 49 states combined. We burn coal for heat and the sky is BIG, but it's also BLACK all winter long becasue of the coal smoke.

If you do move to Montana or Wyoming, your grandkids will all be born with 6 to 8 toes on each foot and they will never get past the 3rd grade in school (cause that as high as the Montana and Wyoming schools go).

I'm telling you. Stay out, or you will all end up "living in a trailer, down by the river"!!

Your better off where you are.

Let me know if you want a 2 or 3 week visitors visa. Other than that your going to be an illegal alien!

AND we got border guards!

and LOTS of them!

If you do come for a visit, I'll be glad to show you around.

CK :drinks:

 

[BubbaZ-Isaac]

I just returned from Glacier Nat park (on the way back from Banff & Jasper).

I suggest you do not miss the Hwy to the Sky in Glacier - just ride it very early in the morning. We started out at 7am - no traffic all the way to the other side.

Be sure to exit the park on the east side, and reenter tthrough the east entrance and ride up to "Many Glaciers Lodge" - have a Huckaberry ice crem and sit outside marveling at the view.

Hwy 12 below Missoula down to just above Boise is about 90 miles of terrific twisties along the bank of a couple of rivers - got to be one of the great motorcycle roads in the world.

Have a good ride.

 

[Clark Kent]

I just returned from Glacier Nat park (on the way back from Banff & Jasper).I suggest you do not miss the Hwy to the Sky in Glacier - just ride it very early in the morning. We started out at 7am - no traffic all the way to the other side.

Be sure to exit the park on the east side, and reenter tthrough the east entrance and ride up to "Many Glaciers Lodge" - have a Huckaberry ice crem and sit outside marveling at the view.

Hwy 12 below Missoula down to just above Boise is about 90 miles of terrific twisties along the bank of a couple of rivers - got to be one of the great motorcycle roads in the world.

Have a good ride.

Correction: The highway is not "Highway to the sky" It is the "Going to the Sun highway"

CK

 

[drc32-0]

Hey leftfield-are ya there yet?Keep us posted.

 

[shokdimn]

leftfield,

Howze zat Montana trip turning out?

 

[SMC]

Got an e-mail from Left Field and he had a great time on his trip up to Montana, he says he will be writing a nice little description of his trip for everyone to drool over in the near future.

I'm also looking forward to that as I am in the planning stages of a two week trip next June from Dallas-Fort Worth to Gallup, NM, to Lost Hills, CA to San Simeon, CA and Hearst Castle to Big Sur, Carmel, Monterey, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Crater Lake, west coast of Washington, Seattle, Vancouver, Lake Louise, Banff, Glacier National Park, Yellowstone, Steamboat Springs, and back home.

Of course may have to trim some of that down, but right now it looks like all that is not out of the realm of reality?

 

[gulag]

smc,checkout the Beartooth Pass on the Wyo-Mont border just south of Red Lodge ,Mont. Then the little road to Cody,Wyo just south of Beartooth.Great rides. Have fun.

 

[Clark Kent]

<snip>Any suggestions on things to see ....

Sorry -- not much to see between Denver and Flathead Lake....!

 

[brazos parker]

Check out Rocketbunny Rocks the Rockies on sport-touring.net. She left the from the Houston area is there now. She's posted descriptions, maps and piccies. Don't think you could go wrong by following her tracks.

EDIT: Oops! My bad! :blush: Thought leftfield's request was a recent post...